Rei, Samarun, and Set made their way through the Officer Academy grounds.
It was a winter night—no snow fell, but a frigid wind whipped through the air. The moon hung hidden behind clouds, its light dim and feeble.
The group trudged through conditions that would normally keep anyone indoors, yet only Samarun shivered from the cold. Rei had his Dragon Robe, and Set was a gryphon—this degree of cold didn't bother it in the slightest. But Samarun, an ordinary human, couldn't help but tremble.
"Ugh, the warmth from your skill earlier makes this feel even worse," Samarun muttered through chattering teeth.
"You look like you're wearing quite a few layers. Still cold?" Rei asked.
Judging by how puffed out Samarun's robe was, there was no doubt he had several layers underneath. Rei wondered how he could still be cold, but given Samarun's naturally lean frame, he was probably just susceptible to it.
"From where I'm standing, I'm amazed you're not cold at all in just that one robe, Rei."
"This is a magic item, after all."
"I'm jealous... incredibly jealous."
Perhaps taking pity on Samarun, who was chattering away to distract himself from the cold, Rei gently patted Set's back. That alone was enough for Set to understand what was needed. It rumbled and moved from Rei's side to Samarun's.
"Huh? What's going on...? Rei?"
"It's cold until we reach the building with the headmaster's office, right? If you stay close to Set, it should warm you up a bit. Riding, though—that's not happening unless Set gives you permission."
"Um, well... is that really okay? Are you sure?"
Samarun asked timidly, but Set rumbled again, its demeanor making clear that it didn't mind. Once Samarun understood the sound wasn't a threat, he broke into a happy smile.
For Samarun, who had a deep interest in magic, Set—or more precisely, gryphons in general—was a source of endless fascination. High-rank monsters could manipulate magical power with ease, making them invaluable references for magical research. He had been curious about them for quite some time. But the chance to interact with an A-Rank monster, let alone an S-Rank one, was extraordinarily rare. In that sense, Gryphon Seto was nothing short of a godsend for Samarun.
"Guruuu."
Set rumbled, as if to say go ahead, touch me.
Tentatively, Samarun reached out... and his fingers brushed Set's back. His eyes went wide at the smooth, silky texture of the fur, and he began stroking Set's back over and over.
A minute or so passed. Before the thought of being late even crossed Samarun's mind, Rei—who could detect the small bird circling above them through presence, sound, and sight—spoke up, feeling a twinge of guilt.
"Samarun, that's enough. If we don't get moving, the scolding we're already in for is only going to get worse."
Rei knew all too well how incredible Set's fur felt. Even he, who had petted Set so many times it would be absurd to count, had never once grown tired of the sensation. For Samarun, experiencing it for the first time, this was pure bliss.
"Ah... I've been to the stables a few times to check on Set before, but I only ever watched from a distance. What was I thinking? Why didn't I pet him and feel this sooner? I'm an idiot."
"Are you really going that far? ...Well, I can't say you're wrong."
Two particular Set-loving female adventurers had gone so far as to call that sensation supreme bliss. By any reasonable standard, Samarun's reaction was perfectly understandable. If anything, Rei—who was constantly at Set's side—might have been the one taking its companionship for granted.
That thought flickered through Rei's mind, but the chirping of the bird overhead snapped him back to reality.
"Come on, let's go. At this rate, we'll be getting lectured until morning."
Rei called out to Samarun, who had once again lost himself in stroking Set's fur. Rei didn't know Erinde all that well, but even he could tell from the bird's agitation that they were furious. More precisely, furious about the exchange between the bird and Samarun. He decided it was best not to provoke them any further and half-dragged Samarun—who was still lost in the intoxicating feel of Set's fur—toward the building that housed the headmaster's office.
"...Eh? Huh? Rei? Where's Set? I swear I was just petting him..."
Perhaps it was the separation from Set upon entering the building that jolted Samarun back to his senses. His memory told him he had been outside, petting Set. But then, somehow—truly somehow—it was as if time had simply skipped, and here he was, inside the building. It was only natural to be disoriented.
Normally, no matter how pleasant Set's fur was to touch, he wouldn't have lost himself this completely. But this time, a combination of factors—his intense fascination with Set, the biting cold of the winter night, the silky smoothness of Set's fur, and the warmth of its body heat—had conspired to make him forget everything else. The fact that he had just witnessed the Flame Emperor's Crimson Armor, a skill that wasn't magic per se but drew heavily on raw mana, may have also played a part.
At any rate, Samarun stood there, wide-eyed, looking around in bewilderment. Rei simply pulled him along without a word.
"Come on. Keeping Erinde waiting any longer is going to make things worse."
Fortunately, once the bird confirmed that Rei and Samarun had entered the building, it peeled away. Apparently, it trusted Rei enough to believe he wouldn't make a run for it at this point.
"Ah, right. ...Now that you mention it, something like that did happen."
"'Something like that'? For goodness' sake, they're one of the higher-ups at this Officer Academy, you know."
"I do respect the Academy Headmaster! That's an undeniable fact. But still, it's... how should I put it. I'd just rather not get scolded, if possible."
"Same here."
Rei said it lightly, but as far as this particular incident was concerned, Samarun was purely collateral damage. Rei had used the Flame Emperor's Crimson Armor to lure out potential attackers or flush out whoever was surveilling him. Samarun hadn't known any of that—he had simply tagged along out of curiosity about Rei's mana-based skill training. Though, to be fair, having witnessed the Flame Emperor's Crimson Armor firsthand, Samarun had few regrets.
"Alright, we're here. Ready?"
"Not really... but I don't exactly have a choice, do I?"
"Nope. I'd rather pretend this never happened too, but that's not an option. Let's go."
Rei knocked, and a voice from inside immediately called them in.
Erinde was waiting—a displeased expression on their face, heavy-lidded eyes boring into them. Normally, Erinde was an elf whose gender was difficult to pin down, but standing there radiating fury, that judgment became even harder to make.
They're angry. I expected that, but... I didn't think they'd be this angry.
Looking absolutely livid, Erinde set the small bird from their shoulder down on the desk, then fixed Rei and Samarun with a cold stare.
"Now then, Lord Rei. I trust you understand why I've called you here. But first, let's hear it from you directly. Why did you do such a thing?"
Rei met their gaze and spoke.
"I think you already have a pretty good idea of the 'why.' But if you're insisting I say it out loud... I suppose it comes down to warning, luring, intimidation, and caution."
"I thought so. That was my assumption as well. I'm not saying your reasoning is wrong. But if you were going to do something like that, couldn't you have at least given me a heads-up beforehand?"
"My apologies on that front. The idea only came to me recently."
"Even if it just came to you, I'd appreciate it if you didn't pull something like that so casually. Setting that skill aside for the moment—what on earth happened to your mana? It's increased explosively. I spat out the hot wine I was drinking."
Erinde vented with a sigh.
Watching them, Rei wondered if perhaps they weren't as angry as he'd initially thought. But the person who understood the situation the least right now was Samarun.
"I'm sorry, but I can't really follow what you two are talking about. Could someone explain the details?"
"...Lord Rei. You didn't tell Samarun anything before dragging him along?"
Erinde's reproachful gaze fell on Rei, who looked away slightly as he spoke.
"I wasn't sure how much I should share. Besides, it's faster to explain everything here, isn't it?"
"Sigh. Fine. I'll handle it." Erinde turned to Samarun. "Listen, Samarun. Lord Rei is being targeted by someone. And not just anyone—someone willing to use poisoned arrows in the middle of a class."
"Huh? Um, are... are you serious?"
Samarun raised his voice, unable to comprehend what Erinde was saying. And it was only natural. The City of Gracial was essentially the seat of Duke Quento's House. Attacking Rei—a guest under Duke Quento's protection—was a direct slap in the Duke's face. Under normal circumstances, no one would dare. Which meant someone decidedly abnormal was behind this.
"Rei, do you have any idea who might be responsible?"
"...Well, I have more than a few leads. Enough that counting them would be a hassle."
"Ah..."
Samarun couldn't help but nod. Knowing Rei's personality, he could have any number of enemies. Most recently, it wouldn't be surprising if King's Faction nobles—the very faction Duke Quento belonged to—were behind this. Even nobles acting on their own, without Duke Quento's knowledge or consent.
"Well, if it were an ordinary opponent, Lord Rei could probably handle it. The problem is the poisoned arrow they used."
"Now that you mention it, you did say something about that earlier. But poisoned arrows... forgive me for saying so, but aren't they commonly used in assassinations?"
What Samarun said was undeniably true. Poison had been used in assassinations since ancient times—it was, in fact, one of the most common methods. And typically, the poisons used were derived from plants or animals. But in this case, the poison itself was the issue.
"Exactly. If this poison weren't Tears of Heaven, I wouldn't be nearly this concerned. You're surely familiar with it, Samarun—Tears of Heaven is an extraordinarily potent deadly poison. So potent that even a scratch could prove fatal. And at the same time, it's extremely difficult to produce."
"Tears of Heaven!?"
The name that left Erinde's mouth was clearly unexpected. Samarun's eyes darted reflexively toward Rei.
"Is that true?"
"Unfortunately, I'm no expert on poisons, so I can't say for certain. But if Erinde, an Elf, says so, I'd take it as fact."
"Quite right. In short, Lord Rei is being targeted by people with the means to obtain and deploy Tears of Heaven. Bearing that in mind, you can see why I'd prefer he not make any reckless moves. Which means Lord Rei's actions tonight were, to put it mildly... considerably unilateral and self-authoritative."
With that, Erinde fixed Rei once more with that heavy-lidded glare—and proceeded to lecture both him and Samarun for the better part of an hour.
...Though Samarun had been dragged into it entirely by Rei.